Texas Tech Athletics
18-4,9-2Big 12
Baylor
14-8,6-5Big 12
No. 13 Red Raiders extend winning streak to seven
February 04, 2025 | Men's Basketball
LUBBOCK – Chance McMillian went on a heater and Darrion Williams put Baylor to bed down the stretch to help lead No. 13 Texas Tech to its seventh straight win with a 73-59 victory on Tuesday at a sold-out United Supermarkets Arena.
The Red Raiders (18-4, 9-2 Big 12) extended their winning streak and also the best start to Big 12 play in program history with the win over the Bears (14-8, 6-5 Big 12) after knocking down 11 3-pointers and committing only eight turnovers. Tech built out a 34-24 halftime lead, saw Baylor get to within three after the break, but would never trail in the second half. Baylor was limited to 5-for-18 shooting on 3-pointers and finished the game at 33.9 percent from the field as Tech improved to 12-2 on its home court this season.
"I just love the grit of this team," Texas Tech coach Grant McCasland said. "We keep finding a way to separate when it matters. I thought Darrion was tremendous down the stretch, Elijah Hawkins controlled the game and ultimately, Chance McMillian broke the game open. His will to win is tremendous. We got great team defensive possessions. We can still improve a lot, but I love seeing our team play together and for each other."
McMillian led the Red Raiders with 19 points after knocking down 5-of-11 from 3-point range while Williams scored 17 points and added eight rebounds. McMillian made three of his 3-pointers in succession in the second half, giving the Red Raiders a 54-44 lead with under 10 minutes to play after Baylor had pulled to within three at 45-42. McMillian now leads the team with 15.5 points per game this season after matching his season-high with five 3s and is shooting 55-for-121 (45.5 percent) from 3-point range.Â
"My coaches and teammates were telling me to shoot," McMillian said. "That moment felt good. Took me back to being a child and wanting that moment. I just embraced it."
Williams finished the game 6-for-6 at the free-throw line and made one 3-pointer, a shot from beyond the arc that gave Tech a 65-57 lead with 2:30 remaining. He hit two more free throws to push the lead to 12 before Federiko Federiko made two more to extend a 7-0 run. Federiko had eight points, four rebounds and matched a season-high with three blocks. Hawkins led Tech with seven assists and went for 13 points while JT Toppin provided eight points, eight rebounds and three assists. Kevin Overton added seven rebounds and Kerwin Walton and Christian Anderson had three points each in a game where eight players scored. Williams recorded a season-high with seven offensive rebounds while Toppin and Federiko had three each.
"We can't get complacent," Williams said. "We've won a few games but could easily lose three in a row and be back to square-one. We have to keep building."
The Red Raiders finished the game shooting 27-for-68 from the field, 11-for-29 on 3-pointers and was 8-for-10 at the free-throw line. Baylor went 19-for-56 (33.9 percent) from the field and was 16-of-20 at the free-throw line. Norchad Omier led the Bears with 16 points and 12 rebounds while Robert Wright had 15 and Jeremy Roach added 12. The teams were even at 41 rebounds each while the Red Raiders had a 28-24 scoring advantage in the paint and an 11-6 scoring margin off turnovers. The Bears had 12 turnovers in the game with Anderson leading Tech with three steals. Tech had 14 offensive rebounds to 13 from Baylor.
Texas Tech took a 34-24 lead into halftime with McMillian scoring 10 points and Topping going into the break with eight points and seven rebounds. The Red Raiders were 6-for-15 on 3-pointers with McMillian and Hawkins making two each while Baylor was just 3-for-11 from beyond the arc. Tech owned a 27-17 rebounding advantage with Overton grabbing seven rebounds and Williams having six. The Red Raiders scored on their opening possession with a dunk by Toppin before a 7-0 run by the Bears. Tech quickly responded though, taking a 15-14 lead on a McMillian 3-pointer and were up 20-16 on a Walton 3. Another 3-pointer by McMillian pushed the lead to 30-21 before a Williams second-chance basket gave Tech its first double-digiti lead at 34-24 – the halftime score.
"Your home-court advantage has to be like it was tonight," McCasland said. "That's the truth. It's real. The impact is real. The momentum that we get playing here."
The Red Raiders now play at No. 20 Arizona at 9 p.m. (CST) on Saturday night at the McKale Center in Tucson in the second matchup of the two teams this season. Tech, which is 5-0 on the road this season, earned a 70-54 win over the Wildcats back on January 18 in Lubbock. The Wildcats (16-6, 10-1 Big 12) extended a five-game winning streak with an 85-74 win over BYU on Tuesday night in Provo, Utah.
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